News & Events

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Rancho Los Alamitos Rancho Los Alamitos (the "Ranch of the Little Cottonwoods") Historic Ranch and Gardens is one of Southern California's longest-inhabited hilltops. The Rancho is located on Tongva-Gabrielino's ancestral land and is a traditional gathering place of the Tonga…
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What’s the First Thing You Think of When Someone Mentions Valentine’s Day? Why ROSES of course! Your MLH board members were invited to join the Orange County Rose Society (OCRS) this past Saturday at the Richard Nixon Library and Museum…
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They’re Creepy and They’re Kooky, Mysterious and Spooky, They’re All Together Ooky, The Plants of Halloween! (Snap-snap) Macro of two insectivorous venus fly trap (Dionaea muscipula) one tightly closed and one open Let’s talk about oddly unusual plants: plants that…
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There's always a lovely little stream running at Oak Canyon Nature Center “Nuclear summer,” I called the hot, dry fall of Southern California. I claimed, we only have two seasons: 7 months of spring and five months of summer that get worse…
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Thank you all SO much for your support for our yearly garden tour honoring our late founder Mary Lou Heard. Even though we had to change the date, and in doing so lost several garden hosts, we saw so many…
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It has surely been a wild rollercoaster that we've all unwillingly been traveling on since the "shut-down" began last year in March. We watched in horror as hospitals were overflowing with COVID-19 patients, many of them our loved ones, friends, and…
Mike Kirsch graciously allowed us to video his beautiful rose garden ahead of the tour. We hope this sneak peek will tide avid gardeners until the tour on June 26 & 27, 2021 10am to 5pm! Mike says about his…
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Admission Booth w/ a living roof! My husband and I always seek out botanical gardens to visit whenever we travel... here's the latest one that I'd like to share with you from the Lone Star State of Texas! We've been…
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Growing up in the 1960's PEEPS were a part of  of my family's Easter Celebration. Most kids received them in their Easter Basket, but my mom used them for a table decoration. She usually started decorating our dining room table…
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Like a Dickens novel - “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”  2020 seemed to start out like any other new year. I do recall it was more fashionable to have a motivational word for…
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The reason I found Heard's Gardens oh so many years ago is due to two years of unsuccessfully trying to grow sweet peas. I had friends who grew mass quantities of these butterfly winged beauties and I was quite often the…
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Most 19th-century Americans found Christmas trees an oddity. The first record of one being on display was in the 1830s by the German settlers of Pennsylvania, although trees had been a tradition in many German homes much earlier. The Pennsylvania German…
As you know from a past newsletter, I have been walking in my neighborhood during my lunch break to try to keep the COVID-19 "15" from appearing on my hips, tummy, & derriere -  you get the picture! Well I've…
Tucker the Tomato Loving Dog
Tucker the Tomato Eating Dog! Tucker, a black and tan smooth-coated " miniature" dachshund was my son Shaun's gift from his grandparents for Christmas 1998. Little did we know that Tucker would forever change the way we grew tomatoes. It all started when a…
To say I live for the Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour could quite possibly be an understatement. The motto “real gardens by real people” is a mantra for me. Throw in Mary Lou’s inspirational personal story, raising money for…
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One woman’s vision forever transformed our notion of a garden. So begins the story of Jennie Butchart, who used horse and cart to transfer topsoil to the famous sunken garden at The Butchart Gardens in Vancouver Island, Canada. With 55…
History of poinsettias
History of the PoinsettiaEuphorbia pulcherrima is a shrub or small tree, typically reaching a height of 2–13 ft. The plant bears dark green dentate leaves that measure 2.8–6.3 inches in length. The colored bracts—which are most often flaming red but can be orange, pale green,…
Creepy things newsletter October 2019
The Mary Lou Heard Foundation’s meetings have begun again after a couple of months of Summertime rest to enjoy our families, our own gardens and essentially, just take a break from the busyness of that “last May push.”   Can you…
How does your garden grow news letter
Hello to all.  While greeting guests in my vegetable garden I was asked at the garden tour "just how do you propagate your seedlings?"  So I thought I would share the way that's successful for me.  Most of the items…
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Cleaning out my apron pockets, readying my "work attire" for the wash, I came across a handful of water balloons.  In our house, they are "arsenal"!  I am SO READY for summer activities to begin!  The outdoor sink will be…
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March 2019 Newsletter That's what I was looking for. I wanted to do something fun in the garden. A fresh idea. A new spin on something old. Or something completely new and original. Perhaps repurposing an object to give it…
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The recent "rainy days" provided an opportunity to "cocoon" inside.  Watching the storm clouds arrive through my kitchen window and trying to predict when the sun would shine again was wonderful.   February is the wettest month for So Cal Coastal…
MLHF President Kathy Ferree and Member at large, Ron Ferree
The seven nicest people you could ever meet.  That's how I think of the all-volunteer Mary Lou Heard Foundation Board.  They donate hours and hours of time all year round to make the garden tour, on the first weekend in…
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Looking for the one special newsletter, here's a back archive of them all! 08/13/2018 - Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour Newsletter - July/August 201806/01/2018 - Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour Newsletter - June 201805/06/2018 - Need Help TODAY…

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THE MARY LOU HEARD FOUNDATION
a 501(c)(3) Public Charity

9681 Flounder Drive
Huntington Beach, CA
92646

No price will ever be put on viewing the gardens. Let your heart dictate and let those who can dig down deep. Each home will have a donation table. Cash or checks will be gratefully accepted.

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